Organizing Under the Sink

    Yes, this sounds like a boring post, but wait...there is super special contact paper involved.  I was able to jazz up the space with my favorite contact paper from Target.   It's been a very crazy week and I haven't been able to post recently.  I have so many projects in the works that I am close to finishing, so stay tuned.
    Back to under the sink.   I was sick of looking under the sink and seeing a sea of paper and plastic bags to reuse or recycle.

    Ugh.  I took everything out.  We have really accumulated quite a few cleaning products over the years.  I am actively working on transitioning to homemade cleaners.  Once I get the formulas just right, I will be sure to share.  Until then, I am also trying to finish up or give away some of the chemically cleaners.

After the jump you can see how beautiful and tidy my under the sink area is now.

Tutorial: Make Lego inspired Boxes (Giftwrap or storage)

    I am going to a birthday party for my friend, Jana.  Being that she is one of my craftiest friends, I wanted to make her something.  It's a no-present kind of gathering, so I made something small that I thought she would like.  I originally wanted to make her tea towels with Legos appliqued or printed on them, but I came up against some obstacles.   Instead, I decided to make her a gift box that could be used to store lots of different things.  Here is the finished product!  What do you think?

After the jump you can see exactly how I made it.

Kitchen Change-Up

I like to accessorize and have exposed storage, so last year we put in IKEA metal rods with little hangers on it.  I really like having it because I can change it out and change the look of the kitchen within just a few minutes.

Here is a quick look at our kitchen about an hour ago.

If you would like to see more than just one side of the kitchen, check out my house tour. After the jump you can see the new set up.  (Spoiler alert: It involves my new flea market finds.)

Easy way to display random things

I like to hold onto postcards that people send me, random pictures, photobooth pictures, cool advertisements, oh who am I kidding, anything visually appealing.  Because of this habit, I have a few boxes and folder just marked "Keep".  The items aren't classy enough to frame, but also are too cool for the fridge.

Here are the items that I wanted to display.  There is an awesome "Bunny" print from Tugboat Print Shop.  I have a few wedding pics,  3 post cards from the Art Institute that I liked, a postcard from the Van Gogh Museum that I sent to Mike, a great Golden Girls card from Caitlin, some photobooth strips and cool Chicago skyline card.


My friend Jen had super cool curtain rods that she used to hang polaroids.  I loved it so much, but the long hallway that I have wouldn't work for a metal rod.  They are all too short.  One day poking around Ikea, I found the perfect answer!

After the jump you can see the finished product.

Creating Storage

I have a lot of stuff!  Every few months I go through a purging phase and try to give away things that I am not using.  That being said, I still need to find organized homes for lots of things.  Mike and I both need functional workspaces, so our second bedroom has two desks.  My old desk just wasn't cutting it.  It was constantly cluttered and really didn't store much of anything.

I looked for a long time trying to find the perfect desk.  One important limitation is that I never want to spend a lot of money.  One day at Ikea, my wheels started turning and I ended up with this:

See how I made it and and get a closer look at all of the stuff I am able to fit in it after the jump.